1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electric toothbrushes. More particularly, the invention is concerned with functional covers that are removably attached to the handles of such brushes.
2. Related Art
Motorised toothbrushes typically comprise a handle section accommodating a motor, a power source, and a switch to control the motor. The motor then drives the brush head through a drive shaft or effects a vibration of the toothbrush head. The power source can either be mains electricity, a rechargeable power supply or disposable batteries in the case of an electric motor. Such motorised brushes are widely commercially available.
There are a number of problems with current motorised toothbrushes.
Many consumers now prefer to co-ordinate the colour schemes in their bathrooms, and would wish to have a toothbrush with a colour scheme matching their decor. However, while for manual toothbrushes a consumer is faced with a choice as to product colour or appearance, providing a suitable range of coloured electric toothbrushes would be prohibitively expensive and wasteful for the supplier as fashions dictate regular changes in colour schemes. Further, it is often the case that what is popular one minute may not be so a few months later. For example, a child may want a blue toothbrush one minute and a red one a few months later. If the child uses an electric toothbrush it would be expensive to purchase a new electric toothbrush just because the child wants one with a different colour.
There are also advantages in having a similar product with differing appearance since a family may comprise a larger number of individuals each wanting to use a similar type of electric toothbrush. It would thus be advantageous if each individual could purchase a product of a different colour to avoid using someone else""s toothbrush. Accordingly, a manufacturer who could provide a large number of product formats which would appeal to a diverse consumer pool would benefit greatly since different people have different needs.
The current invention advantageously allows for the toothbrush user to easily change the cover themselves as they see fit. Therefore the particular colour scheme that the consumer wishes to have either for aesthetic or practical reasons can be met by removing the current cover and replacing this with a cover with the desired attributes.
Electric brushes are generally stored with the handle as a base, such that liquid from the used brush drains onto the handle, leading to the build up of deposits and necessitating regular cleaning of the handle. This means that the handles are generally made from shiny and non-tacky plastic which is easy to clean but difficult to grip.
When several people use the same bathroom, the need exists to identify which brushes belong to which owner for hygiene reasons. Some brushes are marked using coloured rings on the drive shaft of the brush, but these marks are easily masked by the build up of white toothpaste deposits over the rings.
GB 2,012,576 discloses a motorised toothbrush with a handgrip mounted on the housing. This handgrip acts as a moveable switch for brush head activity. In contrast to the current invention this handgrip is not detachable by the toothbrush user. A further limitation that GB 2,012,576 encompasses is the potential for build-up of toothpaste and other deposits such as microbial contamination inadvertently caught between the moving parts. This could occur because as the hand-grip portion moves between two extreme positions of movement, gaps are created between the hand-grip and the housing. Likewise this design leads to the potential for the pinching of fingers between such moveable parts. The current invention overcomes these problems by disclosing a cover that can be easily removed so that cleaning of both the cover and the handle can be carried out separately by the toothbrush user. This removes the need to attempt to clean the hard to reach places between the moveable parts in GB 2,012,576. The cover in this invention is also firmly attached to the handle so that in use it does not move in such a way that could pinch a finger or get build up of deposits taking place. U.S. Pat. No. 5,309,591 discloses a protective cover for such a motorised brush, adapted to prevent the brush from being switched on when transported. However, this also requires that the cover is removed before brushing can take place.
The current invention overcomes the problems of the prior art by providing a cover for a handle of a motorised toothbrush wherein the cover is firmly and removeably attachable to the handle by the toothbrush user, characterised in that the toothbrush can be used with the cover in place.
The toothbrush must be capable of being used when the cover is in place. Since the invention relates to motorised electric toothbrushes it is meant that the cover may be attached to the brush handle and maintained there without having to be removed to actuate the electric elements of the brush. In such a way the cover may be placed on the handle and then left there for the lifetime of the brush or even until another cover is to be employed. This is contrast to the device according to the prior art which must be removed to actuate the brush but which, in theory, could be reattached after the brush has been turned on and then used during brushing.